Convertible couch



Feb. 8, 1938. I p CUTLER 2,107,728

CONVERTIBLE COUCH Filed Jan. 23, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet l 44 49 45INVENTOR.

Phila}: Caller ATTORNEY.

Feb; 8, 1938. CUTLER 2,107,728

CONVERTIBLE COUCH 7 Filed Jan. 25, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 65 45 95INVENTOR.

lu b'p Cutler BYwmm. I

ATTORNEY.

Feb. 8, 1938. I CUTLER 2,107,728

CONVERTI BLE COUCH Filed Jan. 23, 1935 I 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 I] 1/7 I as IINVENTOR. Philip Culveraw/WM ATTORNEY.

35 ticle of furniture.

PATENT omce 2,107,728 CONVERTIBLE coUcH- Pliilip' curler, New York, N.Y. Application January" 23, 1935-, Serial No. 3,068

V 1 Claim. 7 Fins-invention relates} generally to convertiblecouches-wherein an upright back member is extensible? to serve ajs-acompanion single" bed to the single'bed afforded-"b'y the surface-50fthe 5* couch. More" specifically; the-invention relates toaconvertiblecouchwherein the backme'mber 'i's supportedf oni'elemeiitsojf-the couch-or sta- 'tiona'ry frame when not in service; as a' doublej1'0 'Tl'ie maih object of the invention residesin the;

provision-of a couchnonvertible intoadoublebed by releasing the baclgmember from the stationary frame, opening folding legs mounted at theunder surface of the 'saidbackmember; and allowing 15 the said ba memberto pivot outwardly "about the fe'nd members of thestationaryframe'whereby the back' member automatically seeks the levelof the stationary couch frame; 7

' Another objectof the inventionis inthe provision' of structure as justdescribed wherein means are'affordedfor' the complete" separation of'theback member'as a single bedfrom the bed afforded by the'stationa'ryframe;

v p A further object of the invention isiin the pro-f 2'5vision'ofstructurewherein means areprovided for the'sup'port ofa backmember for a couch'in' a nevelform, the said means being for themattress orj upholstery portion of the back member and for I theframeorspring portion of the back'm'ember'. 30

provision of a convertiblebo'uch which is economi: cal tomanufac'ture,easy tooperate, comprised of a minimum number of parts and which isadaptedto furnish a most aesthetic looking ar- ,7 These objects andother incidental ends and advantages will hereinafterappearin theprogress I off'thi's disclosure and as' pointed outfin the. an

7 pe'nddcl'aim. v I i 40'" "Accompanying this specification; aredrawings showing a preferred" embodimentof'th invention I andwherein thereferencecharacters appearing in; the drawings designate correspondingpartsthroughout the several views thereof.

. In-accordance with the drawings:

" Figure l is a view in perspective of-a preferred embodiment of Y aconvertible? couch in accordance 'wi ththeinvention; Figiire' ,2 isFaatransverse;sectional view of Fig ure 1- a'long' -the plane2-2thereof.

*Figiire' 3 i s*a"view"in perspective of thestationaryahdniovabletruck"frames"of the convertible movable 'truck'frame' v being partly separated from the stationary Another object ofthe invention resides in the" movable truck frame is capable of assumingwith relation to the stationary frame;

' Figure 5 is a view inelevation of the rear of the m'ovable'truck frameshown mounted onthe end pieces of the stationary frame, the said viewbeing shortened along the length thereof.

Figure" 6 is an enlarged view in perspective showing one of the 'twochannels aflixedto the end pieces ofthe stationary frame, thesaidchannel being" adapted to allow pivot elements from the movabletruckto move vertically therein and to be supported thereby.

Figure 7'is'a' fragmentary plan'view partly in section showing themechanism controlling the operation'of the folding legs of the movabletruck frame.

Figure 8 is a sectional view of an alternate manner" of 'su-pporting'theback member of the convertible 'couch;-the' said alternate manner beingin relation to the showing of the back member"in"Figu're 2' oftheaccompanying drawings.

In'accordance' with the invention and in accordance'with a preferredform shown in the accompanying drawings", the structure is comprised ofastationary frame'ha'ving end members detachably" affixed thereto and amovable 3'5 truck frame which when in upright position serves as a couchback while when in extended position serves as a single bed incompanionship withthe single be'd 'offered bythe 'stationary frame; Themovable truck frame'is supported 40 on tw'o'channel members mounted onthe inner surfaces o'f' the detachable endpieces of the stationaryframe, and it is in these channel members that pivots from the movabletruck frame are supported andslidable above the lower limiting wall ofthe saidchannel members. When the movable truck frame is in uprightposition, the pivots thereof bear in the bottom walls of the channelmembers. In order to extend the truck frame from the upright position,the said frame is released from the upright position, the folding legsforcedoutwardly from the undersurface and the entire frame permitted topivot outwardly by virtue of the Weight thereof. As the legs of theframe of the truck member touch the floor, the pivots of the truck frameride upwardly and vertically in the channel members until the legs ofthe truck member all touch the floor at once at which time the level ofthe truck frame is the same as the level of the single bed afforded bythe stationary frame, thereby affording a double bed. The single bed ofthe truck frame is capable of complete separation from the stationaryframe by lifting the pivots thereof from the channel members in the endpieces of the stationary frame.

The novelty of the invention resides in the articulation between thestationary frame and the truck frame and the manner of supporting thesaid truck frame when in upright position,

the said manner of supporting the truck frame being equally applicableto the support of the upright or back of an ordinary couch having anupholstered back with a frame work therefor. Moreover, novelty of theinvention resides in the other features hereinafter set forth in aspecific description of the preferred form of the invention shown in thedrawings.

The stationary frame of the convertible couch is provided with two endpieces I!) and If to serve as the arm members of the structure and maybe upholstered in any known manner. The upper parts of the arm membersare designated by numerals l and II respectively. The stationary frameis made preferably of angle iron and is assembled from uprights or legs!2, l3, l4 and I5, lower end rails l6 and H, upper end rails l8 and [9,lower longitudinal rails 20 and 2 l, and upper rear longitudinal rail 23and upper front longitudinal wire or flexible band 22, the said member22 being extended from the upper end rails 58 and E!) by means of theordinary coil contractile springs. The purpose of having member 22flexible or resilient is to afford a springable forward edge to thecouch. The upper end rails of the stationary frame designated bynumerals l8 and iii support a bed spring which is pivotal for thegreater part of the width thereof. The bed spring for the pivotal partthereof is provided with a frame member having end rails 24 and 25superposing end rails is and I9 respectively and pivoting with thelatter rails at 24 and 25 respectively. Connecting end rails 24 and 25is a longitudinal rail member offset downwardly and extending forwardlythereof, the said longitudinal rail member being designated by numeral26, and being adapted to clear member 22 in the raising and loweringthereof. Beyond pivotal points 24 and 25' are sections of end rails 21and 28 superposing and connected with the end portions of end rails I8and I9 respectively of the stationary frame. End rails 21 and 28, andend rails 24 and 25 of the pivotal frame member furnish the supports forthe usual contractile coil springs 31 which serve to maintain the knownwire or band surface for the support of a mattress 41, the said wire orband surface not being shown in the accompanying drawings.

Numerals 29, 36, 3| and 32 represent reinforcing links between theuprights and the upper and lower end rails of the stationary frame ofthe couch, while 33, 34 and 35, 36 are slots on the outer surfaces ofuprights l2 and i3 respectively, each pair. of slots being in alignment.Similarly, uprights l4 and i are each provided with a pair of alignedslots 33, 34' and 351, 36 respectively on the outer surfaces thereof.Each of the end, pieces ll! and H of the stationary frame is providedwith fingers having upwardly offset portions extending from the innersurfaces to cooperate with the slots in the aforementioned uprightswhereby the stationary frame acts as a suspension from the end pieces.It can easily be seen, however, that the end pieces H] and II may besupported on the uprights of the stationary frame where the saiduprights are designed to be supported on the floor. In this event, thefingers projecting from the inner surfaces of the end pieces l0 and Ilwould have downwardly projecting offset portions to cooperate with theslots in the uprights. This invention contemplates such a variationalthough the drawings omit reference thereto.

As shown in the drawings, the stationary frame affords a bedding storagecompartment by providing a bottom wall 38 extending from the lowerlongitudinal rails 20 and 2| and from the lower end rails 16 and H, afront wall 39 extending from the lower longitudinal rail 20 to below thewire or band member 22 and from uprights l2 and E4, and a rear wall 40extending from uprights l3 and I5 and from upper and lower longitudinalrails 2| and 23. The end pieces and H furnish side walls for the beddingstorage compartment. The walls mentioned in this paragraph may be of anysuitable material such as cedar wood or any other adaptable substance.

In order to gain access to the said, bedding storage compartment, thepivotal frame, bounded by end rails 24 and 25 and front or longitudinalrail member 26 is raised as is! shown in Figure 3 of the accompanyingdrawings.

Numeral 42 represents any upholstery material such as cloth and ispreferably stretched between the front edges of end pieces l0 and H andis mounted between lower longitudinal rail 21! and above wire or bandmember 22 to give the couch a finished appearance inthis region as seenin Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings. Numerals 43, 44, 45 and 46represent supports on which the stationary portion of the convertiblecouch rests against the floor, 45 and 46 being the known casters while43 and 44 are leg sections. Behind the leg sections 43 and 44 arecasters 48 and 49 to enable easy rolling of the couch.- It is easilyseen'that housings maybe provided for the casters 45, 46 and 48 and 43thereby eliminating leg sections 43 and 44. and thus rendering animproved appearance to the structure.

Between end rails l6 and 18 of the stationary frame is affixed avertical frame member 50 provided with a vertically extended slotthrough which a pivoted catch arm 5! rides, the said catch arm beingpivoted at 54 to the end rail 24 as shown in Figure 3 of theaccompanying drawings. The lower edge of arm 5! is provided with a notch52 near the outer extremity of the said arm which notch is adapted tocatch in a cross member 53 in the slot of frame member 53, Thus, thecross member53 serves as a bearing for the lower edge of arm 5|; whenthe pivotal spring is raised, the same has alimiting and locked positionwhen notch 52 engages the cross member 53. Inorder to lower the pivotalspring, arm

5! must be manually pulled forward to disengage notch 52 from crossmember 53.

The movable truck frame is now to be described. The said truck frame iscomprised of an upper framework having longitudinal rails 55 and 56 andend rails 51 and 58. These parts as in the case of the stationary frameare preferably of angle iron. The outer surface of the forwardlongitudinal rail 56 is provided with upright 59' intermediate thelength thereof and uprights 60 40 v proximate the endsthereof and: 511'at the end'sa-offthe said rail 56'. Theruprightsyfiflrand' 50." areeach: provided with.v plates larly ofplates BDand' 60 61s" and: Elextending .inwardly and perpendicurespectively. The purpose of theupright 59, 60 and 60' is to serve as alower supportfor the mattress 96when thelatter is in'vertic'al position, while the purpose or plates 6!and 5 I is to prevent lateral displace- "mentiof: mattress 96 in allpositions.-"fi y Y (the last mentioned" 1 is provided with a springsurface suspended or maintained by contractile coil springs- 65- affixedto the end rails 51' and 58 of theupperframe work,ithe-said springsurfacenot being shown in the'accompanying drawings in'Figure 3. Nu-

merals66- and GT represent' orifices in the end rails of the upperframe" work inwardly of the forward 'longit'udinal rail 55 to be'eng'aged by hooks 94 and'95-respectively mounted on the rear edges ofend pieces H and lll'forapurpose herei'r'iafter tobe described. Numeral62' represents a wire or bandmember' extending from uprightlill toiupright 59 and? from upright 59 to upright mentioned, comprises an upperframe work'and folding legs.

' said" uprights for the 30:

69" and servesas a cooperating supportwith'the mattress 96 when thelatter isin vertical position,

The movable truck frame, as has been before Each pair of 1 legs ispreferably formedof a- U-shaped bar'as is shown in Figure 681 the lowersupporting --means therefor. The

v leg-68 at pivot are the upright members of the bar an'dthelowerconnecting cross piece upper ends of legs 618", 68are pivotally'connected to the longitudinal-rails 55 and 56 of'the upper frame workof the movable truck frame as best seen by reference to Figure 7. 'Thefront rear leg 69' is plvotedat 12h) the inner wall or rail 55- at thetop" of the-said; leg 58'. Legs 68' and 68" are alsjo'reinforced by aV-shaped reinforcing member- 69 affixed to the intermediat 1eg68f ashort'distance I is adapted to engagewith a depression M Numeral15"represents an angle memberrivetedto' end rail 55; and is adapted toserve asa limiting stop for thesaid leg 68 when m outstretched oroperative. position as shown in Figures 5 and '7. Pivotally connected tothe said 1'! approximately between pro-, jection'13 andpivot "is a linkl'lconnectedto thefront end rail 58 by] contractile spring 18.

It thusjcanbe seen that leg 68 when in" folded position remains so byvirtuejof projection 13, in

witsrnortiselld and by virtue ofthe fact that pivot 12 isbelQW pivotg'lli Leg 58" is similarly pro-' videdwith a projection and mortisetherefor, ,an angle member to serve as a limiting stop for leg 68" and apivotal link springably mounted from the front end rail 58. I

Opposite legs 19' and 19 are joined by a lower connecting piece 10 andby a V-shaped reinforcing member 1 l. Leg 10' is provided with aproiection 80 adapted to fit into a mortise 8|, a limiting stop or anglemember 82 for leg 10, a pivotal link 83 mounted to end rail 51 by acontractile spring 84. Leg 10" is provided with similar means.

v ev portion of Numeral 13 represents afprojec tion; rounded preferably,on the "outer surface of, from the top thereof; and: suitable mortise or14, on thei'inner wall of longitudinal Fromthe foregoing, it is seenhowthe folding legsa68', 68'. and 10', 10 remainin-open position by thetension of the springable mounting thereof and. the angle member stopsand how the same legs-remain in folded position by virtue of-roundedprojections and mortises: therefor and by virtue of the off-centerposition of the legs with respect to their respective pivots. Verylittle hand" pressure is required to open and close the legs of'themovabletruck frame.

End pieces [0 and H at the inner surfaces thereof and proximate to-therear edges are each provided with similar channel members 85'and 85respectively; Each chann'el'member is affixed to its respective endpiece and comprises preferabl'y a vertical slot open at the top andclosed at the bottom, the said slot-leading'into-a vertical chamber openat the top-andclosed-at the bottom as best shown in Figure 6 of theaccompanyingdrawings. Channel member 85is thus provided with a slot 85aand chamber 85b. Similarly, channel member 85"is-provided with a slot85'a and chamber 85b. I

End rails 51 and 58 of the'truck frame proximate the forward edgesthereof are provided With-outwardly projectingtrunnions 87 and '86respectively, the said trunnions being adapted to slide up and down ofthe slotted chambers of the channel members 85 and 85'. The saidtrunnions areprovided with end disc members 81 and 86' respectively forengagement with the channel members 85 and 85'-. It is thus seen how themovable truck frame is mounted on the end pieces l0 and H bymerely-raising the truck frame so that'trunnions 81 and 88 together withtheir respective. disc members 81" and 86' enter the openings of thechannel members 85 and 85'.

The rear edges of the end pieces l0 and H proximate the tops thereof areeach provided with pivotal fingers adapted to hold the truck frame orback of the convertible couch by engaging the end rails when the latterare in vertical position. Thus end piecel 0 is provided with a finger 88pivoted near the top of the. rear edge thereof at pivot 89; the saidfinger 88 being provided with a stop projection 90. 1 Similarly, endpiece H is provided with a'pfinger. 9l at pivot 92, the said finger 19!.being'also provided with a stop projection 93;

Orifices 66 and 61 intheend rails of. the upper frame work inwardly ofthe forward'longitudinal rail 56 of the movable truck frame as hasbefore been mentioned are engaged by hooks 94 and 95 respectivelymounted on the rear edges of end pieces I I and I 0. These hooks andorifices are provided to insure against movement of the rear portion ofthe convertible couch when the said rear portion is'in. the position ofa single day bedadjoining the single. day bed affordedby thefstationaryframe, and is in close proximity. thereto by virtue of the disconnectionof trunnions 86 and 8T from" channel members 85' and 85;" I

.Iight position below its prior position. By so doing and by providing asupporting structure such as a plurality of brackets 91 to hold mattress96 in vertical position above rail 55, a better looking top is given tothe convertible couch.

At the same time uprights 68, 60, 59 and band members 62 are eliminatedto support the back mattress 96 when in upright position. As shown,brackets 91 extend from rear wall 40 of the bedding storage compartment.It is easily seen that any other form of a support such as a ledge maybe substituted for brackets 91 to function as a support for mattress 96of the rear of the convertible couch when the said mattress is inupright position, the said support being suitably mounted from eitherthe rear portion of the stationary frame or from the inner sides of theend pieces llland ll.

The convertible couch is susceptible of being upholstered in any knownfashion, one form of upholstery being shown. in Figure l of theaccompanying drawings. Mattress 41 of the stationary frame and mattress96 of the back or movable frame are fashioned to present the appearanceof adjoining cushions.

The conversion of the couch to a double bed or to two single bedswherein the members are separable or are articulately joinedat theoption of the user involves a simple operation that a child canaccomplish. Pairs of folding legs 68,

68" and 19', 10" are'drawn outwardly into final open position by pullingthe connecting pieces 68 and 10 respectively until the legs impingeagainst their respective stops through the action of the contractilesprings already described. Thereupon fingers 88 and 9| are raised toupright position as. shown in solid lines in Figure 5. Thus the rearsupport of the movable frame when in upright position is removedallowing the back or movable frame to pivotally drop outwardly by virtueof its own weight. Pivots 86 and 81 supporting and attached to themovable frame at this time rest on the bottom closed portion of slots85a and 85a respectively and revolve thereabout. Pivots 86 and 81 areforced upwardly along the vertical slots 85'a and 85a respectively fromthe time that legs 68" and 19" touch the ground until all the legs andthe connecting cross pieces therewith touch the floor at once at whichtime the level of the truck frame is the same as the level of the singlebed afforded by the stationary frame. Thus a double bed comprised of twosingle beds pivoted together results. By raising the pivots 86 and 81out of the open tops of slots 85'a and 85a respectively, the truck framecan be drawn more closely to the stationary frame and held in positionby means of hooks '94 and 95 engaging with orifices 66 and 61respectively. On the other hand, the truck frame instead of being drawnmore closely to the stationary frame may be distantly removed therefromand serve as an independent and single bed. Casters 98 ease the facilityof movement of the truck frame.

Mattresses 41 and 96 are each removable from the springs of thestationary and the movable frames so that the same may be reversed andremoved for the usual reasons. The ordinary expedients of keeping thesaid mattresses in place such as tape members extending from thesurfaces of the mattresses to be tied to the springs at suitable placescan be resorted to. Such temporary affixation is especially necessaryfor mattress 96 since the latter is in upright position when theconvertible couch is in non-bed use. Moreover, the spring surfacesthemselves may be covered with cloth to protect the mattressthereagainst. The bedding compartment in the stationary frame serves tostore the materials needed for the use of the convertible couch as adouble bed or as two single beds.

In order to reassemble the stationary frame and the truck or movableframe into a convertible couch, pivots 86 and 81 are inserted into slots8571. and 850. respectively, the movable or truck frame is raisedfromthe ground whereupon the weight of the said truck frame causes thepivots 86 and 81 to descend to the lowermost wall of slots 85'a and 8511respectively. Thereupon the legs are folded inwardly. Fingers 86 and 9|are manually made to engage end rails 51 and 58 respectively of thetruck frame to maintain the latter in upright position.

It is to be clearly understood that minor changes and variations in thestructure of the several parts, in the material and integration thereofand in the combinations and subcombinations thereof may all be resortedto without departing from the spirit of the invention and Withoutdeparting from the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

In a convertible couch, a stationary frame having a bed spring surface,end pieces to support the said stationary frame, a second frame havinganother bed spring surface, foldable uprights connected to the saidsecond frame and capable when extended of independently supporting thesecond frame horizontally at a height substantially the same as that ofthe first mentioned bed spring surface, pivotal securing means betweenthe stationary and second frames comprising two elongated, verticallydisposed channel members open at the top and closed on the bottom, eachbeing oppositely affixed to the said end pieces rearwardly of andextending below the stationary frame, projections extending from thesecond frame and being mounted in the said channel members for rotation,re-

moval and vertical displacement whereby the,

second frame when in upright position is spaced from the rear of thestationary frame and extends below the level of the stationary frame,supporting means projecting upwardly from the forward longitudinal edgeof the second frame, duplicate loose mattresses supported on the saidstationary and second frames, the said loose mattress against the secondframe when the latter is" in upright position being held in uprightposition by means of the above-mentioned supporting means and the rearlongitudinal edge of the loose mattress for the stationary frame.

PHILIP CUTLER.

